Wednesday, January 25, 2017

This speaks for me also...

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I recently posted here about the racist Carl Pladino and complained about the reactionary views expressed in The Italian Tribune news...

"The decision of a handful of labor leaders to meet with Trump is an example, to put the best spin on it, of sectional, not class thinking. Class thinking begins with the needs and desires of a working class as a whole. It is attuned to the unequal and uneven ways in which Trump's policies in particular and exploitation and oppression in general scar the lives of working people. It considers the struggle for equality to be at once organic to and independent of working class formation, consciousness, and unity. It is also mindful that the fortunes of the labor movement, especially now, depend on deep and durable alliances with its key allies - people of color, women, young people, immigrants, seniors, LGBT people, and many others. Finally, class thinking is repelled by anything that normalizes Trump and his policies at this moment. If labor leaders are anxious to meet, meet with the Chuck Shumer, Nancy Pelosi, Bernie Sanders, Keith Ellison, and the leaders of various congressional caucuses, meet with the organizers of the Women's march, meet with the new social movements, meet with Muslims and other communities of faith, meet with those who will immediately feel the pain of Trump's executive orders and policies, meet with young people in the community and on campuses, meet with the editors of major news sites, and meet with the whole array of leaders of the broad democratic movement. It is only in such conversations and the actions that come out of them that the worst of Trump's policies will be blocked and conditions will be created for a new burst of freedom that insures economic well being for all, expands and deepens democracy and equality, respects difference and the preciousness of life, and safeguards peace and our planet in its beauty and diversity."---Sam Webb

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Mark Ruffalo Reads Eugene Debs

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Tuesday, January 24, 2017

"Should the marches have been more multiracial and working class? Yes! But you are not a serious organizer if that’s where your answer to the question ends. The issue for the left is how we get from where we are today to where we want to be in terms of making our marches blacker, browner and more working class. Simply complaining about it changes nothing....The women’s marches were the beginning, not the end. What happens next will be decided by what we do. Movements do not come to us from heaven, fully formed and organized. They are built by actual people, with all their political questions, weaknesses and strengths. If the left doesn’t engage with the aim of contending for leadership and influence, we just concede these forces to the Democrats and liberals, who will certainly try to confine the new upsurge of opposition to the political limits they want to define. The point isn’t to bury our arguments. If we want to win people to more radical politics, we must learn how to make our arguments while operating in political arenas that aren’t just our own. Revolutionary socialists have a long and rich tradition of building united fronts, which seems more real now that 3 million people were in the streets. We must do a better job at facilitating debate, discussion and argument so that we talk about how to build the kind of movement we want. But endless social media critiques with no commitment to diving into that struggle for the kind of movement we want is not a serious approach."---Keeanga-Yamahtta Taylor

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A First-Woman View Of The March in D.C.

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Many of us are still riding a euphoric wave after the demonstrations held last Saturday. We're still excited about the numbers of people...

Kurdish Women Have Much To Teach Women In The U.S.---Let's Build A Struggle Together!

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YPJ (Women's Defense Units) Spokeswoman Nesrin Abdullah described Raqqa operation that was launched at the end of 2016 and led by t...

Studying The Movement For Black Lives Platform In Salem---A Message From An Activist & Meetings In Salem On Jan. 31 And Feb. 8

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Hello everyone: We have a time ( 6 pm ) and location (3850 Portland Rd NE #100) set for  January 31 . The Salem-Keizer Coalition for Equa...

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Pro-Choice Coalition of Oregon Lobby Day Rally---Tuesday, February 28 at 9 AM - 5 PM---Oregon State Capitol

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Join the Reproductive Health Equity Now campaign to help Oregon pass landmark legislation. The Pro-Choice Coalition of Oregon’s Lobby Day is...

Some Important Salem Community Events On Thursday, Jan. 26, 2017---Opportunities To Get Active!

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Many important community events will be held this Thursday, Jan. 26. Here are 3 which we think are important: 6:00 PM: Salem Solidarity N...

The Hypocrisy We Live With

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Monday, January 23, 2017

Thursday, January 26, 7:00 p.m., Salem: POWER, PRIVILEGE & RACIAL DIVERSITY IN OREGON, an Oregon Humanities conversation led by Emily Drew, at Salem Public Library, 585 Liberty St., SE. More info from Valorie Freeman at vafreeo9@gmail.com, 503.561.5279

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Sunday, January 22, 2017

Important Upcoming Events In Corvallis And Salem

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Wednesday, Jan. 25, 9:00am - 10:30 :  Palestine: Public Health Under Occupation Women's Building, room 210, OSU campus, 160 SW 26th S...

The Struggle To Save The Elliott State Forest Continues---An Important Alert From Portland Audubon

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Portland Audubon, Cascadia Wildlands, Sierra Club, Oregon Wild, and the Center for Biological Diversity are teaming up to organize an Elliot...

Please Support Striking Momentive Workers

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Monday, Jan. 23, 7pm: Breaking Chains: Slavery on Trial in the Oregon Territory (Book) Independence Civic Center, 555 S Main Street, Independence, Oregon. In Breaking Chains, R. Gregory Nokes tells the story of the only slavery case adjudicated in Oregon’s pre-Civil War courts—Holmes v. Ford. Through the lens of this landmark case, Nokes explores the historical context of racism in Oregon and the West, reminding readers that there actually were slaves in Oregon, though relatively few in number.

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Saturday, January 21, 2017

Salem Solidarity Network---Meets Thursday, Jan. 26 at 6:00 PM at 1730 Commercial St. SE in Salem

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Salem's NEXT Demonstration

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We Stand With Standing Rock DeFund DAPL March February 4 Start at Wells Fargo State & Church Sts. 11 am Walk to US Bank, Chase & ...

Photos From Today's Womens' March in Salem---United Front Tactics Work!

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All photos above taken from the March's Facebook page. The following came from our c...